And then there were two.
A new member was appointed to the Bradford Board of Selectmen Monday after two others abruptly resigned last week leaving only board member Marlene Freyler, who was unable to carry out town business due to a lack of a quorum.
Judge Andrew Schulman approved the appointment of Christopher Frey to act as a temporary selectman for Bradford until the town holds its next election.
There were no objections to Frey’s appointment and the town plans to hold an election in March for two new selectmen, according to town attorney Matthew Decker.
Decker said the reasons for Selectman Jason Allen’s resignation were personal. Allen read a letter in person at the last meeting that said that he needed to devote more time to his business and personal life.
Selectman Michael James attended the last meeting online and Allen read a letter from him that said he was resigning because of disagreements with Freyler. Both resignations were effective Jan. 25.
Schulman said he had concerns after hearing the reasons for the resignations.
“Obviously, I have to appoint a person to serve on the select board so that the town can conduct business,” he said.
Schulman said his decision had nothing to do with the politics within the town of Bradford.
“What I don’t want to do is have the superior court take sides in a local dispute by appointing a partisan against the background of disagreements,” he said.
“The court needs to be neutral and careful and take great care to ensure that it’s appointing not only a civic-minded individual, Mr. Frey obviously is, but somebody who is going to act consistent with the sort of caretaker role that a judicial appointment, as opposed to a town vote, should instill,” he added.
Decker said the issue of fairness has been at the foremost concern.
“That’s actually one of the reasons why Ms. Freyler decided in her role as a resident and voter to petition the court rather than taking the position that she was, quote unquote, the remaining selectman and could unilaterally appoint a replacement without petitioning the court,” Decker said. “That’s one thing we have on the line today, Selectman Freyler and the Town Administrator Karen Hambleton, who both support Mr. Frey’s appointment, the affidavit of Ms. Freyler, sets forth that Mr. Frey does have a long history of good service to the town. Mr. Frey is here and can speak on his own behalf as well that he would be nonpartisan and he’s really here just to help bridge the gap and help the town get through this difficult situation.”
Decker said the need for the court’s consent on Frey’s appointment was urgent.
“There’s payroll that needs to go out tonight,” Decker said. “You know we need a functioning select board immediately.”
Schulman said that he understood that having only one selectman paralyzed the functioning of the town and the need to appoint a selectman to make sure the board is able to make decisions. He said that he had a case in Rockingham County where all three select board members quit and the court appointed two new members.
“If we have one selectman appointed by the court, then we’ll have a reconstituted board of two selectmen, two out of three, there’ll be a majority,” Schulman said.
Decker said more than 100 people visited the website to learn more about Frey’s appointment and he received an email in support of Frey from Mary Ellen Pfeifle, a widow of former Selectman John D. Pfeifle.
Decker said the two members of the board were not planning to appoint a third selectman because they were waiting for the town elections, which are usually held in March but may be postponed this year due to the pandemic. Decker said the town moderator has not yet determined if the deliberative session will definitely happen on schedule and that it’s possible it could be postponed until May or later in the year. If elections are postponed for months, Freyler and Frey may decide to appoint a third selectman, Decker said.
Schulman offered the opportunity for town members to speak in support or against Frey’s appointment.
Bradford Planning Board Chairwoman Pam Bruss said she had no objections to Frey serving as a selectman as long as he filled the role more as a caretaker, as outlined by the court.
“I am concerned about underlying issues that have been going on in the town for 30 or so years,” Bruss said. “The town feels very split. And it’s unfortunate. I do think reasons for resignation were beyond just personal decisions. So I just worry about the people that we did vote in, and the decisions that have been made and the fact that, it might be, things may be undone.”
She said she has had great interactions with Frey, but remained concerned about the situation as a whole.
Schulman listed off some of Frey’s civic history for the record. Frey was selected to sit on the budget committee for 14 years, founded the rescue squad and was a volunteer firefighter for nearly 50 years.
“I thank you for volunteering,” Schulman said to Frey. “Your civic mindedness is notable. But I just want to make sure that you share my understanding,” adding that Frey should approach the position in a different way than winning an election. “Hopefully, you sort of view the role as a caretaker role through the next election.”
Frey agreed to taking the role as a caretaker and agreed to act in a nonpartisan way.
Town Moderator Brackett Scheffy, a retired attorney and retired circuit correct judge, spoke in favor of Frey’s appointment.
“I am basically here, just to, just in case, there might be some disagreement about the appointment of Chris Frey,” Scheffy said. “He is somebody that I’ve known for, I would guess the entire 15-plus years that I lived in Bradford. And I think that the record that your honor spoke of is very representative. Those were those were duties that he took seriously. So I’m absolutely in favor of the appointment.”